Refrigeration appliances that have water or ice dispensers generally include a filter to remove impurities from the water supply before entering the refrigeration appliance equipment. Unfiltered water from a premises water source is typically fed via a filter inlet into a filter within the refrigeration appliance cabinet. The water is filtered within the filter and passed out of a filter outlet to whatever device is provided, such as an ice maker or a water dispenser.
As with most any such filtration system, as filtered particles are captured by the filter medium for a period of time, the filter should be cleaned and/or changed out. This period of time may vary dependent on the characteristics of the water provided based on the local water or treatment type, whether municipal or well water is employed, etc. In any event, periodically, the filter in such a refrigeration system should receive some attention from a user to maintain optimal performance.
It is important that the proper water filter be used with a given refrigeration device. For example, if the wrong filter is used, leakage may occur, insufficient filtration may occur, or system blockage may occur. Similarly, if a filter is misinstalled leakage or malfunctioning can occur. Therefore, a monitoring device that could determine that a proper filter device was in place, and/or was installed correctly, would be welcome.